Chip package with die and substrate

ABSTRACT

An integrated chip package structure and method of manufacturing the same is by adhering dies on a silicon substrate and forming a thin-film circuit layer on top of the dies and the silicon substrate. Wherein the thin-film circuit layer has an external circuitry, which is electrically connected to the metal pads of the dies, that extends to a region outside the active surface of the dies for fanning out the metal pads of the dies. Furthermore, a plurality of active devices and an internal circuitry is located on the active surface of the dies. Signal for the active devices are transmitted through the internal circuitry to the external circuitry and from the external circuitry through the internal circuitry back to other active devices. Moreover, the chip package structure allows multiple dies with different functions to be packaged into an integrated package and electrically connecting the dies by the external circuitry.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the priority benefit of Taiwan application serial no. 90133195, filed Dec. 31, 2001.

This application is related to application Ser. No. 10/054,001, filed on Jan. 19, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,673,698; and related to application Ser. No. 10/690,350, filed on Oct. 21, 2003, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/996,535, filed on Nov. 24, 2004, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/996,537, filed on Nov. 24, 2004, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/055,498, filed on Jan. 22, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,800,941; and related to application Ser. No. 10/454,972, filed on Jun. 4, 2003, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/055,560, filed on Jan. 22, 2002, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/638,018, filed on Aug. 8, 2003, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/977,289, filed on Oct. 28, 2004, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/174,462, filed on Jun. 17, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,746,898; and related to application Ser. No. 10/755,042, filed on Jan. 9, 2004, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/055,499 filed on Jan. 22, 2002, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/728,150 filed on Dec. 3, 2003, now pending; and related to application Ser. No. 10/794,472 filed on Mar. 5, 2004, now pending, all assigned to a common assignee.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an integrated chip package structure and method of manufacture the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to an integrated chip package structure and method of manufacture the same using silicon substrate.

2. Description of related art

In the recent years, the development of advanced technology is on the cutting edge. As a result, high-technology electronics manufacturing industries launch more feature-packed and humanized electronic products. These new products that hit the showroom are lighter, thinner, and smaller in design. In the manufacturing of these electronic products, the key device has to be the integrated circuit (IC) chip inside any electronic product.

The operability, performance, and life of an IC chip are greatly affected by its circuit design, wafer manufacturing, and chip packaging. For this present invention, the focus will be on chip packaging technique. Since the features and speed of IC chips are increasing rapidly, the need for increasing the conductivity of the circuitry is necessary so that the signal delay and attenuation of the dies to the external circuitry are reduced. A chip package that allows good thermal dissipation and protection of the IC chips with a small overall dimension of the package is also necessary for higher performance chips. These are the goals to be achieved in chip packaging.

There are a vast variety of existing chip package techniques such as ball grid array (BGA), wire bonding, flip chip, etc. . . . for mounting a die on a substrate via the bonding points on both the die and the substrate. The inner traces helps to fan out the bonding points on the bottom of the substrate. The solder balls are separately planted on the bonding points for acting as an interface for the die to electrically connect to the external circuitry. Similarly, pin grid array (PGA) is very much like BGA, which replaces the balls with pins on the substrate and PGA also acts an interface for the die to electrically connect to the external circuitry.

Both BGA and PGA packages require wiring or flip chip for mounting the die on the substrate. The inner traces in the substrate fan out the bonding points on the substrate and electrical connection to the external circuitry is carried out by the solder balls or pins on the bonding points. As a result, this method fails to reduce the distance of the signal transmission path but in fact increase the signal path distance. This will increase signal delay and attenuation and decrease the performance of the chip.

Wafer level chip scale package (WLCSP) has an advantage of being able to print the redistribution circuit directly on the die by using the peripheral area of the die as the bonding points. It is achieved by redistributing an area array on the surface of the die, which can fully utilize the entire area of the die. The bonding points are located on the redistribution circuit by forming flip chip bumps so the bottom side of the die connects directly to the printed circuit board (PCB) with micro-spaced bonding points.

Although WLCSP can greatly reduce the signal path distance, it is still very difficult to accommodate all the bonding points on the die surface as the integration of die and internal devices gets higher. The pin count on the die increases as integration gets higher so the redistribution of pins in an area array is difficult to achieve. Even if the redistribution of pins is successful, the distance between pins will be too small to meet the pitch of a printed circuit board (PCB).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore the present invention provides an integrated chip package structure and method of manufacturing the same that uses the original bonding points of the die and connect them to an external circuitry of a thin-film circuit layer to achieve redistribution. The spacing between the redistributed bonding points matches the pitch of a PCB.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention presents a chip package structure and method of manufacturing the same by adhering the backside of a die to a silicon substrate, wherein the active surface of the die has a plurality of metal pads. A thin-film circuit layer is formed on top of the die and the silicon substrate, where the thin-film circuit layer has an external circuitry that is electrically connected to the metal pads of the die. The external circuitry extends to a region that is outside the active area of the dies and has a plurality of bonding pads located on the surface layer of the thin-film layer circuit. The active surface of the die has an internal circuitry and a plurality of active devices, where signals can be transmitted from one active device to the external circuitry via the internal circuitry, then from the external circuitry back to another active device via the internal circuitry. Furthermore, the silicon substrate has at least one inwardly protruded area so the backside of the die can be adhered inside the inwardly protruded area and exposing the active surface of the die. Wherein the silicon substrate is composed of a silicon layer and a heat insulating material formed overlapping and the inwardly protruded areas are formed by overlapping the silicon substrate with openings on the heat conducting layer. Furthermore, the present chip package structure allows multiple dies with same or different functions to be packaged into one integrated chip package and permits electrically connection between the dies by the external circuitry.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary, and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings,

FIGS. 1A to 1I are schematic diagrams showing the sectional view of the structure of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A to 2C are schematic diagrams showing the sectional view of the structure of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 3A to 3C are schematic diagrams showing the sectional view of the structure of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 4A to 4I are schematic diagrams showing the sectional view of the structure of the forth embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 5A to 5E are schematic diagrams showing the sectional view of the structure of the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the sectional view of the chip package structure of a preferred embodiment of the present invention with one die.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the sectional view of the chip package structure of a preferred embodiment of the present invention with a plurality of dies.

FIG. 8 is a magnified diagram showing the sectional view of the chip package structure of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 9A, 9B are schematic diagrams of the top and side view respectively of the patterned wiring layer of the thin-film circuit layer with a passive device.

FIG. 10A is a schematic diagram of the formation of a passive device by a single layer of patterned wiring layer of the thin-film circuit layer.

FIG. 10B is a schematic diagram of the formation of a passive device by a double layer of patterned wiring layer of the thin-film circuit layer.

FIG. 11A is a schematic diagram of the formation of a passive device by a single layer of patterned wiring layer of the thin-film circuit layer.

FIG. 11B is a schematic diagram of the formation of a passive device by a double layer of patterned wiring layer of the thin-film circuit layer.

FIG. 11C is a schematic diagram of the formation of a passive device by a double layer of patterned wiring layer of the thin-film circuit layer.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Please refer to FIG. 1A, a silicon substrate 110 with a surface 112 and a plurality of dies 120 are provided. Dies 120 have an active surface 122 and a backside 124 is also provided, where the active devices are formed on active surface 122 of the dies. Furthermore, dies 120 have a plurality of metal pads 126 located on active surface 122 of dies 120 acting as the output terminal of dies 120 to transmit signals to the external circuitry. Backside 124 of dies 120 is adhered to surface 112 of silicon substrate 110 by a conductive paste or adhesive tape. Therefore, active surface 122 of dies 120 is facing upwards along surface 112 of silicon substrate 110.

Please refer to FIG. 1B, when adhering die 120 to silicon substrate 110, a filling layer 130 can be formed on top of surface 112 of silicon substrate 100 surrounding the peripheral of dies 120 to fill the gap between dies 120. The height of filling layer 130 should be approximately equal to the height of active surface 122 of dies 120. The material of filling layer 130 can be epoxy, polymer, or the like. After curing of filling layer 130, a grinding or etching process is applied to planarize filling layer 130 so the top face of filling layer 130 is planar with active surface 122 of dies 120.

Please refer to FIG. 1C, after the formation of filling layer 130 on silicon substrate 110, a dielectric layer 142 is deposited on top of filling layer 130 and active surface 122 of dies 120. Dielectric layer 142 is patterned according to metal pads 126 on dies 120 to form thru-holes 142 a. The material of dielectric layer 142 can be poly-Imide (PI), benzocyclobutene (BCB), porous dielectric material, stress buffer material, or the like. Patternization of dielectric layer 142 can be performed by photo via, laser ablation, plasma etching, or the like.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 1C, filling layer 130 is used to support dielectric layer 142 so dielectric layer 142 can be formed planarized on top of silicon substrate 110 and dies 120 without an uneven surface. As a result, after dielectric layer 142 is formed on surface 112 of silicon substrate 110 and active surface 122 of dies 120, dielectric layer 142 also fills the peripheral of dies 120, meaning the gap between dies 120. Therefore the bottom structure of dielectric layer 142 can replace the structure of filling layer 130 covering entirely surface 112 of silicon substrate 110 and surrounding dies 120. The method of forming dielectric layer 142 includes first depositing a layer of dielectric layer 142 entirely over dies 120 and silicon substrate 110, then after curing, a grinding or etching process is performed to planarize dielectric layer 142.

Please refer to FIG. 1D, after forming dielectric layer 142 and patterning dielectric layer 142 to form thru-holes 142 a, a patterned wiring layer 144 is formed by photolithography and sputtering, electroplating, or electro-less plating. Wherein part of the conductive material from patterned wiring layer 144 will be injected into thru-holes 142 a to form vias 142 b, copper (Cu) is used as the material for patterned wiring layer 144. Moreover, thru-holes 142 a can be pre-filled with a conductive material such as a conductive glue to form vias 142 b. Therefore no matter if the thru-holes are filled with the conductive material from patterned wiring layer 144 or pre-filled with a conductive material, patterned wiring layer 144 is electrically connected to metal pads 126 of dies 120. It is to be noted that part of patterned wiring layer 144 extends to a region outside active surface 122 of dies 120. Dielectric layer 142 and patterned wiring layer 144 form a thin-film circuit layer 140.

Please refer to FIG. 1E, after the formation of patterned wiring layer 144, another dielectric layer 146 can be formed similarly to dielectric layer 142 on top of dielectric layer 142 and patterned wiring layer 144. Dielectric layer 146 is also patterned to form thru-holes 146 a, whereas thru-holes 146 a correspond to bonding pads 144 a of patterned wiring layer 144.

Please refer to FIG. 1F, after the formation and patternization of dielectric layer 146 to form thru-holes 146 a, a patterned wiring layer 148 can be formed on dielectric layer 146 in a similar way as patterned wiring layer 144. Wherein part of the conductive material from patterned wiring layer 148 will be injected into thru-hole 146 a forming a via 146 b. By the same token, patterned wiring layer 148 is electrically connected to patterned wiring layer 144 by vias 146 b, and further electrically connected to metal pads 126 of die 120 by vias 142 b of thru-hole 142 a. Therefore, thin-film circuit layer 140 further comprises dielectric layer 146, a plurality of vias 146 b, and patterned wiring layer 148.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 1F, in order to redistribute all metal pads 126 of dies 120 on silicon substrate 110, the number of patterned wiring layers (144, 148 . . . ) and dielectric layers (142, 146 . . . ) for electrical insulation may be increased. All patterned wiring layers (144, 148 . . . ) are electrically connected by vias (146 b . . . ) of thru-holes (146 a . . . ). However if only the first patterned wiring layer 144 is required to entirely redistribute metal pads 126 of dies 120 on silicon substrate 110, extra dielectric layers (146 . . . ) and patterned wiring layers (148 . . . ) will no longer be required in the structure. In other words, thin-film circuit layer 140 comprises at least one dielectric layer 142, one patterned wiring layer 144, and a plurality of vias 142 b. Wherein patterned wiring layer (144, 148 . . . ) and vias (142 b, 146 b . . . ) of thin-film circuit layer 140 form an external circuitry of thin-film circuit layer 140.

Please refer to FIG. 1G, after the formation of patterned wiring layer 148, a patterned passivation layer 150 is formed on top of dielectric layer 146 and patterned wiring layer 148. Patterned passivation layer 150 is used to protect patterned wiring layer 148 and expose the plurality of bonding pads 148 a of patterned wiring layer 148, whereas some of bonding pads 148 a are in a region outside of active surface 122 of dies 120. As previously mentioned, the redistribution of metal pads 126 on silicon substrate 110 requires multiple layers of patterned wiring layers (144, 148 . . . ) and a patterned passivation layer 150 formed on the very top, which is furthest away from silicon substrate 110. However, if only patterned wiring layer 144 is required to redistribute metal pads 126 of dies 120 on silicon substrate 110, patterned passivation layer 150 will be formed directly on patterned wiring layer 144. The material of passivation layer 150 can be anti-solder insulating coating or other insulating material.

Please refer to FIG. 1H, after the formation of patterned passivation layer 150, a bonding point 160 can be placed on bonding pads 148 a serving as an interface for electrically connecting die 120 to the external circuitry. Wherein bonding point 160 illustrated in FIG. 1H is a ball but it is not limited to any formation, which might include a bump, pin, or the like. Ball connector maybe solder ball, and bump connector maybe solder bump, gold bump, or the like.

Please refer to FIG. 1I, after the formation of bonding points 160 on bonding pads 148 a, a singularization process of packaged die 120 by mechanical or laser cutting is performed along the dotted line as indicated in the diagram. Afterwards, the chip package structure of the die is completed.

According to the above, the first embodiment of the present invention is a chip package structure with a silicon substrate and a plurality of dies on it. The external circuitry of the thin-film circuit layer allows the metal pads of the die to fan out. By forming bonding pads corresponding to the metal pads of the dies such as solders balls, bumps, or pins as the signal input terminals, the distance of the signal path is effectively decreased. As a result, signal delay and attenuation is reduced to increase performance of the die.

Furthermore, the fabrication process of semi-conductor includes forming active devices and internal circuitry on the surface of a silicon wafer and singularizing the wafer for individual chips. Therefore the main substance in a chip is silicon. The present invention provides a silicon substrate as the chip package structure to package the chip after adhesion to the silicon substrate. The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the chip and the silicon substrate is identical which can reduce thermal stress between the chips and the silicon substrate at high operating temperature of the chips. As a result, the life span and durability of the chips after packaging is increased because the metal traces of the chip and silicon substrate will not be stretched.

The second embodiment of the present invention differs from the first embodiment by having inwardly protruded areas in the silicon substrate. This area is for placement of the die with the backside of the die adhered against the bottom of the area so the overall thickness of the chip package structure is reduced. FIGS. 2A to 2C are schematic diagrams of the sectional view of the second embodiment illustrating the fabrication of the structure.

Please refer to FIG. 2A, a silicon substrate 210 with a surface 212 is provided. In FIG. 2B, multiple inwardly protruded areas 214 on surface 212 of silicon substrate 210 are formed by removing part of silicon substrate 210. The method of forming inwardly protruded areas 214 includes wet etching at a controlled rate so the depth of each inwardly protruded area 214 is approximately equal to that of die 220. Therefore the outline and depth of inwardly protruded areas 214 will be the same as dies 220 in FIG. 2C. The rate of etching can be increased by using KOH, which has a higher corrosiveness on silicon, to improve the speed of the fabrication process. Alternatively, the inwardly protruded areas 214 on silicon substrate 210 can be formed by machining such as milling. In FIG. 2C, backside 224 of dies 220 is adhered to the bottom of inwardly protruded areas 214 so dies 220 are inlayed in inwardly protruded areas 214. Active surface 222 of die 220 is exposed along surface 212 or silicon substrate 210.

The structure of the second embodiment of the present invention after FIG. 2C will follow FIGS. 1C to 1I from the first embodiment of the present invention, therefore it will not be repeated.

The second embodiment of the present invention is a silicon substrate with a plurality of inwardly protruded areas for inlaying dies by adhering the backside of the dies to the bottom of the inwardly protruded areas and exposing the active surface of the dies. A thin-film circuit layer is formed on top of the dies and the silicon substrate to fan out the metal pads of the dies by using the external circuitry of the thin-film circuit layer. Due to the inlay of the dies in the silicon substrate, thinning of the thickness of the chip package structure is effectively achieved and the surface of the silicon substrate provides enough planarity and support for the formation of the thin-film circuit layer.

The third embodiment of the present invention differs from the second embodiment of the present invention by using an integrated silicon substrate with at least one silicon layer and one heat conducting layer. FIGS. 3A to 3C are schematic diagrams of the sectional view of the third embodiment illustrating the fabrication of the structure.

Please refer to FIG. 3A, an integrated silicon substrate 310 consists of a silicon layer 310 a with multiple openings 314 a and a heat conducting layer 310 b, wherein the material of heat conducting layer 310 b maybe metal. In FIG. 3B, part of silicon layer 310 a is removed and placed overlapping heat conducting layer 310 b so openings 314 a of silicon layer 310 a form inwardly protruded areas 314, wherein silicon layer 310 a is wet etched downwards until reaching the surface of heat conducting layer 310 b. Following in FIG. 3C, backside 324 of die 320 is adhered to the bottom of inwardly protruded areas 314 so dies 320 are inlayed in silicon substrate 310 with active surface 322 of die 320 exposed along surface 312 of silicon substrate 310.

The structure of the third embodiment of the present invention after FIG. 3C will follow FIGS. 1C to 1I from the first embodiment of the present invention, therefore it will not be repeated.

The third embodiment of the present invention is an integrated silicon substrate with a silicon layer with a plurality of openings and a heat conducting layer, wherein the openings are formed by etching. The openings on the silicon layer will form inwardly protruded areas on the integrated silicon substrate. The backside of the die adheres to the bottom of the inwardly protruded areas so the dies are inlayed in the inwardly protruded areas exposing the active surface of the dies.

As mentioned above, this integrated silicon substrate can efficiently dissipate heat from the dies to the outside because the bottom of the inwardly protruded area is the surface of the heat conducting material. The surface of the silicon substrate provides enough planarity and support for the formation of the thin-film circuit layer. Moreover, the CTE of the chips and substrate is identical so thermal stress between the chips and the silicon substrate is greatly reduced because the metal traces on the chips are not stretched to increase the life span and durability of the chips.

The fourth embodiment of the present invention is slightly different from the first three embodiments. FIGS. 4A to 4E are schematic diagrams of the sectional view of the fourth embodiment illustrating the fabrication of the structure.

Please refer to FIG. 4A, a silicon substrate 410 with a first surface 412 and an insulating layer 414 of material such as metal nitride or metal oxide formed on top of first surface 412 of silicon substrate 410. The thickness of insulating layer 414 is about 2 microns to 200 microns, usually 20 microns. Following, a plurality of dies 420 having an active surface 422, a backside 424, and a plurality of metal pads 426 located on active surface 422 is provided. The fourth embodiment of the present invention differs from the third embodiment of the present invention by placing active surface 422 of die 420 downwards facing first surface 412 of silicon substrate 410.

Please refer to FIG. 4B, a filling layer 430 is formed on top of insulating layer 414 after active surface 422 of die 420 is adhered to first surface 412 of silicon substrate 410. Filling layer 430 covers entirely first surface 412 of silicon substrate 410 and surrounds dies 420. The material of filling layer 430 maybe an oxide, epoxy, or the like.

Please refer to FIG. 4C, after the formation of filling layer 430, a planarization process such as chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is performed to planarize filling layer 430 and backside of die 420. Although the thickness of the active devices and wiring (not shown) on active surface 422 of die 420 is much less than that of die 420, the thickness of die 420 should not be too small because cracks or damage to the die will occur during machine handling (for example vacuum suction). However the present invention directly adheres active surface 422 of die 420 on first surface 412 of silicon substrate 410 without further machine handling. Afterwards a CMP process is performed on backside 424 of dies 420 to reduce the thickness of dies 420. As a result, dies 420 are ground to a very small thickness allowing the final chip package structure to be much thinner.

Please refer to FIG. 4D, after the planarization of filling layer 430 and dies 420, a second silicon substrate 440 with a second surface 442 is adhered to filling layer 430 and dies 420 creating a sandwich effect with filling layer 430 and dies 420 in between two silicon substrates 410 and 440.

Please refer to FIG. 4E, after the adhesion of second silicon substrate 440, first silicon substrate 410 is removed by etching until reaching insulating 414 and preserving insulating layer 414 on top of dies 410 and filling layer 430. First silicon substrate is used to provide a planar surface (surface 412 in FIG. 4A) for the adhesion and formation of insulating layer 414. Therefore first silicon substrate can be replaced by substrate of other material such as glass, ceramic, metal, or other organic material.

Please refer to FIG. 4F, after the thinning of first silicon substrate 410, a plurality of first thru-holes 410 a are formed on insulating layer 414 for exposing metal pads 426 of active surface 422 of die 420. First thru-holes 410 a can be formed by machine drilling, laser, plasma etching, or similar methods.

Please refer to FIG. 4G, a first patterned wiring layer 450 is formed on insulating layer 414. Using the same method disclosed in the first embodiment of the present invention, first vias 410 b in first thru-holes 410 a are formed by either filling first thru-holes 410 a with part of the conductive material from patterned wiring layer 450 or pre-filling first thru-holes 410 a with a conductive material before the formation of patterned wiring layer 450. A part of patterned wiring layer 450 will extend to a region outside active surface 422 of die 420.

Please refer to FIG. 4H, a dielectric layer 462 is formed on insulating layer 414 and first patterned wiring layer 450. Wherein dielectric layer 462 is patterned to form a plurality of second thru-holes 462 a, which correspond to bonding pad 450 a of patterned wiring layer 450.

Please refer to FIG. 4I, a second patterned wiring layer 464 is formed on dielectric layer 462. Using the same method as above, second vias 462 b in second thru-holes 462 a can be formed by either filling second thru-holes 462 a with part of the conductive material from patterned wiring layer or pre-fill second thru-holes 462 a with a conductive material before the formation of patterned wiring layer 464. Similarly, in order to redistribute metal pads 426 of dies 420 on second silicon substrate 440, dielectric layer (462 . . . ), second vias (462 a . . . ), and second patterned wiring layer (464 . . . ) can be repeatedly formed on dies 420 and silicon substrate 440. Wherein insulating layer 414, first patterned wiring layer 450, dielectric layer 462 . . . , and second patterned wiring layer 464 . . . form thin-film circuit layer 460. First vias 410 b, first patterned wiring layer 450, second vias 462 b . . . , and second patterned wiring layer 464 form the external circuitry of thin-film circuit layer 460.

The structure of the fourth embodiment of the present invention after FIG. 4I will follow FIGS. 1G to 1I from the first embodiment of the present invention, therefore it will not be repeated.

The fourth embodiment of the present invention is a silicon substrate with the active surface of the dies directly adhered to the insulating layer of the first silicon substrate. A filling layer is formed over the dies and the silicon substrate followed by a planarization and thinning process. Afterwards, a second silicon substrate is adhered to the die and the filling layer. A plurality of thru-holes filled with conductive material are formed on the insulating layer. Finally, a patterned wiring layer is formed on the insulating layer allowing the external circuitry of the thin-film circuit layer to extend to a region outside the active surface of the die to help fan out the metal pads of the die.

The advantage of this structure is increased surface stability and accuracy because the active surface of the dies are first adhered to the surface of the first silicon substrate. The thickness of the die can be very small for reducing the overall thickness of the chip package because no machines handling of dies is required.

The fifth embodiment of the present invention takes the first half of the fabrication process from the fourth embodiment of the present invention and combines with the second half of the fabrication process from the first embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 5A to 5E are schematic diagrams of the sectional view illustrating the fabrication of the structure.

Please refer to FIG. 5A, an insulating layer 514 is formed on top of first surface 512 of silicon substrate 510. Following, an active surface 522 of dies 520 is adhered to a first surface 512 of insulating layer 514. Wherein the material of insulating 514 includes metal nitride or metal oxide. In FIG. 5B, a filling layer 530 is formed on top of dies 520 and insulating layer 514 covering dies 520.

In FIG. 5C, a planarization and thinning process of dies 520 and filling layer 530 is performed to planarize backside 524 of dies 520 and filling layer 530. In FIG. 5D, a second silicon substrate 540 is formed on top of dies 520 and filling layer 530 so backside 524 of dies 520 adheres to second silicon substrate 540. By removing filling layer 530, first silicon substrate 510, and insulating layer 514, the metal pads on active surface 522 of dies 520 are exposed, as illustrated in FIG. 5E.

First silicon substrate 510 and is used to supply a planarized surface (first surface 512), and will be removed in later stages of the fabrication process. Therefore first silicon substrate 510 can be replaced by substrates of other materials such as glass, metal, silicon, metal, or other organic material. Similarly, insulating layer 514 of first silicon substrate is also removed in later stages of the fabrication process. Therefore it is not necessary to form insulating layer 414 on top of first silicon substrate 510 and directly adheres active surface 522 of dies 520 to first surface 512 of first silicon substrate 510.

The structure of the fifth embodiment of the present invention after FIG. 5E will follow FIGS. 1B to 1I of the first embodiment of the present invention, therefore it will not be repeated.

The fifth embodiment of the present invention is a silicon substrate with the active surface of the die adhered to the insulating layer of the first silicon substrate for allowing high surface stability and accuracy. As a result, it eliminates the need of machine handling of the dies to achieve a very small thickness of the die for reducing the overall thickness of the chip package.

Furthermore, please refer to FIG. 6, it illustrates the schematic diagram of the sectional view of the chip package structure 600 of the present invention for a single die 620. Die 620 is placed on silicon substrate 610, and a thin-film circuit layer 640 is formed on top of die 620 and silicon substrate 610. External circuitry 642 of thin-film circuit layer 640 has at least has one patterned wiring layer 642 a and a plurality of vias 642 b. The thickness of the inner traces inside die 620 is usually under 1 micron, but because the high amount of traces collocated together so RC delay is relatively high and the power/ground bus requires a large area. As a result, the area of die 620 is not enough to accommodate the power/ground bus. Therefore the chip package structure 600 uses thin-film circuit layer 640 and external circuitry 642 with wider, thicker, and longer traces to alleviate the problem. These traces act an interface for transmitting signals for the internal circuitry of die 620 or the power/ground bus of die 620. This will improve the performance of die 620.

Please refer to FIG. 8, it illustrates a magnified view of the sectional view of the chip package structure of the present invention. Active surface 622 of die 620 has a plurality of active devices 628 a, 628 b, and an internal circuitry 624. The internal circuitry 624 forms a plurality of metal pads 626 on the surface of die 620. Therefore signals are transmitted from active devices 628 a to external circuitry 642 via internal circuitry 624 of die 620, and from external circuitry 642 back to another active device 628 b via internal circuitry 624. The traces of external circuitry 642 are wider, longer, and thicker than that of internal circuitry 624 for providing an improved transmission path.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 6, external circuitry 642 further comprises at least one passive device 644 including a capacitor, an inductor, a resistor, a wave-guide, a filter, a micro electronic mechanical sensor (MEMS), or the like. Passive device 644 can be located on a single layer of patterned wiring layer 642 a or between two layers of patterned wiring layers 642 a. In FIGS. 9A, 9B, passive device 644 can be formed by printing or other method on two bonding points on patterned wiring layer 642 a when forming thin-film layer 640. In FIG. 10A, a comb-shape passive device 644 (such as a comb capacitor) is formed directly on a single patterned wiring layer. In FIG. 10B, passive device 644 (such as a capacitor) is formed between two layers of patterned wiring layers 642 a with an insulating material 646 in between. Wherein the original dielectric layer (not shown) can replace insulating material 646. In FIG. 11A, passive device 644 (such as an inductor) is formed by making a single layer of patterned wiring layer 642 a into a circular or square (not shown) spiral. In FIG. 11B, column-shape passive device 644 (such as an inductor) is formed by using two layers of patterned wiring layers 642 a and a plurality of vias 642 b to surround an insulating material 646 forming a column. In FIG. 11C, circular-shaped passive device 644 (such as an inductor) is formed by using slanted traces from two layers of patterned wiring layers and a plurality of vias 642 b to surround an insulating material 646 in a circular manner forming a pie. The above structures allow the original externally welded passive devices to be integrated into the inside of the chip package structure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a chip package structure 600 for a single die 620 but FIG. 7 illustrates a chip package structure 700 for a plurality of dies. Chip package structure 700 in FIG. 7 differs from chip package structure 600 in FIG. 6 by having a die module 720, which comprises at least one or more dies such as die 720 a, 720 b. Die 720 a, 720 b are electrically connected by the external circuitry of the thin-film circuit layer. The function of die 720 a, 720 b can be the same or different and can be integrated together by external circuitry 742 to form a multi-die module (MCM) by packaging same or different dies into one chip package structure. When multiple dies are packaged into the same chip package structure, singulation process is performed on the determined number of dies.

Following the above, the present invention provides a chip packaging method by adhering a die to a silicon substrate or to an inwardly protruded area of a silicon substrate, and forming a thin-film circuit layer with bonding pads and points above the die and silicon substrate. This structure can fan out the metal pads on the die to achieve a thin chip package structure with high pin count.

Comparing to the BGA or PGA package technique used in the prior art, the chip package of the present invention is performed directly on the die and the silicon substrate for fanning out the metal pads on the die. It does not require flip chip or wire bonding to connect the die to the micro-spaced contact points of a package substrate or carrier. The present invention can reduce cost because the package substrate with micro-spaced contacts is very expensive. Moreover the signal transmission path of the present invention is reduced to lessen the effect of signal delay and attenuation, which improves the performance of the die.

Furthermore, the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the chips and silicon substrate is identical so thermal stress is greatly reduced between the chips and silicon substrate because the expansion between the metal traces on the silicon substrate and the chips is prevented. Consequently, the life span and durability of the chips are increased. Wafer level packaging technique, that is the technique on packaging the chips directly on a chip wafer, is already well know in the art. Therefore the present invention can adapt currently available chip scale packaging machine to fabricate the silicon substrate using blank silicon chip wafer. As a result the cost fabricating the silicon substrate is greatly reduced and practicality and applicability of the present invention is increased.

Furthermore, the third embodiment of the present invention provides an integrated substrate comprises a silicon layer and a heat conducting layer. A plurality of openings can be pre-formed on the silicon layer by etching so inwardly protruded areas are formed for inlaying the die when the silicon layer overlaps the heat conducting layer. The heat conducting layer helps to dissipate heat to the outside from the die during operation, which will effectively increase performance. Moreover the CTE of the chips and the silicon substrate is identical so life span and durability of the chips after packaging are increased. The thin-film layer circuit of the present invention is used to transmit signals between two main active devices inside the die, or used as a power/ground bus, or used to add in passive devices. Furthermore, the chip package structure of the present invention can accommodate one or more dies with similar or different functions. The external circuitry of the thin-film circuit layer connects the multiple dies together and can be used in a MCM package. The chip package structure of the present invention adapts the MCM, the external circuitry of the thin-film circuit layer, the passive devices of the external circuitry to form a package that is “system in package”.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A chip package comprising: a substrate having a first surface at a first height and a second surface at a second height, said first height different from said second height, said substrate having opposing sidewalls between said first surface and said second surface of said substrate, in which said opposing sidewalls and said first surface of said substrate define an opening in said substrate; only one singulated die positioned in said opening in said substrate, said singulated die having a first surface opposite said first surface of said substrate and a second surface opposite said first surface of said singulated die; an adhesive material joining said first surface of said substrate and said second surface of said only one die, wherein said adhesive material comprises an adhesive tape joining said first surface of said substrate and said second surface of said only one die; a first insulating layer coupled to said only one die, coupled to said substrate and across an edge of said only one die, wherein said first insulating layer comprises a first portion vertically over said only one die and a second portion not vertically over said only one die, wherein said first insulating layer is not integrated with said adhesive material; a patterned circuit layer over said first insulating layer, said first horizontal level, said only one die and said substrate and across said edge, wherein said patterned circuit layer is connected to said only one die through a first opening in said first insulating layer; a passive device over said first horizontal level and said first insulating layer, wherein said passive device comprises an inductor; and a second insulating layer over said passive device.
 2. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said only one die comprises a first trace formed therein, and wherein said patterned circuit layer comprises a second trace having a thickness greater than that of said first trace.
 3. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said patterned circuit layer comprises a power bus.
 4. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said patterned circuit layer comprises a ground bus.
 5. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said patterned circuit layer connects multiple portions of said only one die.
 6. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said first insulating layer comprises polyimide.
 7. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said first insulating layer comprises benzocyclobutene (BCB).
 8. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said adhesive material comprises a conductive paste joining said top surface of said substrate and said bottom surface of said only one die.
 9. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said patterned circuit layer comprises an electroplated metal.
 10. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said patterned circuit layer comprises a sputtered metal.
 11. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said passive device has a portion vertically over said substrate but not vertically over said only one die.
 12. The chip package of claim 1 further comprising a metal bump having a portion vertically over said substrate but not vertically over said only one die.
 13. The chip package of claim 1 further comprising a polymer layer on said substrate, wherein said only one die is between a first portion of said polymer layer and a second portion of said polymer layer.
 14. The chip package of claim 13, wherein said polymer layer comprises epoxy.
 15. The chip package of claim 1 further comprising a solder interconnect coupled to a first level.
 16. The chip package of claim 1 further comprising a gold interconnect coupled to a first level.
 17. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said only one die comprises multiple active devices, and said patterned circuit layer connects said multiple active devices.
 18. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said substrate comprises a silicon substrate.
 19. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said patterned circuit layer comprises copper.
 20. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said substrate comprises a metal layer.
 21. The chip package of claim 1, wherein said passive device comprises copper. 